ANNANDALE, VA – A Virginia State Police trooper fatally shot a knife-wielding suspect Sunday after responding to a road rage incident that escalated into a mass stabbing on Interstate 495, leaving a woman and a dog dead and multiple others injured.
The incident unfolded at approximately 1:17 p.m. on I-495 southbound near Little River Turnpike in Annandale, Fairfax County, roughly 30 minutes from Washington, D.C., according to Virginia State Police.
Authorities said the stabbings occurred before or as the trooper was responding to the reported road rage incident. When police arrived at the scene, they found a male suspect armed with a knife and four stabbing victims.
During the confrontation with the knife-wielding suspect, the responding trooper shot and killed the man in self-defense, police said. The trooper was not injured in the encounter.
State police identified one of the deceased victims as a 39-year-old woman who succumbed to her injuries from the stabbing attack. A dog was also fatally stabbed during the incident, authorities confirmed.
The violent episode prompted authorities to shut down the highway amid reports of heavy police presence in the area. The Virginia Department of Transportation’s Northern Virginia office announced that “I-495 and 495 Express Lanes southbound past Gallows Road is closed due to a major incident,” with lanes “blocked due to police activity.”
Officials said the attack does not appear to be terrorism-related, and the incident remains under investigation by Virginia State Police.
The Fairfax County Police Department confirmed to Fox News Digital that it is assisting state police troopers with the ongoing investigation into the highway stabbing spree.
